


say that you'll stay awake for me

by vonbluen



Category: Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons), Trollhunters - Daniel Kraus & Guillermo del Toro
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, I love Aja though!!, Introducing, M/M, Not 3Below Compliant (Tales of Arcadia), Romance, She's badass!!, Soft Steve, but worry not i've got u, cue manic laughter, so no staja sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-22
Updated: 2020-08-22
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:33:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26048830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vonbluen/pseuds/vonbluen
Summary: Steve had realized he took certain aspects of his life for granted.“I’m sorry, Eli. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”And he learned that the hard way.(Or: Arcadia does its weird habit of inviting all sorts of companies from diverse places in the mortal plane again. But more importantly, Earth Invaders 3 season finale with Eli. In Eli’s bedroom. On Eli’s bed. What could possibly go wrong?)
Relationships: Steve Palchuk/Eli Pepperjack
Comments: 8
Kudos: 61





	say that you'll stay awake for me

**Author's Note:**

> Title came from Awake by Secondhand Serenade because I was listening to some music and my loser brain did its thing where it suddenly shoves a random idea in my head only this time, I actually managed to write it. 
> 
> Also, it's been _so long_ since I've written anything that isn't related to school. I've forgotten how to story! 
> 
> Now with my Works page dusted and de-cobwebbed, on to the story. Enjoy!

“That’s _wicked_ ,” Steve practically exclaimed, throwing his hands up cheerfully and causing what was left of their popcorn to fly up in the air before scattering on the soft sheets. “That has got to be THE BEST episode of _Earth Invaders_ , ever!”

Eli tried to shush him albeit half-heartedly, given how exhilarated he was as well after watching the _Earth Invaders_ season 3 finale. The episode came out just a few hours before school ended for the week and he had been waiting painstakingly for the bell that signaled the end of their last class. He had resisted the urge to bolt out the door when the sweet, sweet ringing of the bell finally came as he vaguely heard Senior Uhl remind them of their final report. 

He supposed he shouldn’t be as surprised as he was when Steve came stomping towards him just a few paces away from their school, demanding they watch it together.

_"Creepslayerz oath! We should watch every release together from now on.”_

_"We don’t even have an oath yet, Steve! I keep telling you we should come up with one. And what does Earth Invaders have to do with creepslaying?”_

_"We’re partners,”_ Steve had said with a flourish, gesturing dramatically with his right arm. _“It would be good to analyze scenarios from the show together! Might help when_ we _inevitably encounter something like it during one of our_ … missions. _”_

Steve whispered the last part theatrically whilst his gaze shifted around the area as if to see whether someone had heard him.

 _“Also_ ,” Steve had added with a shrug _, “why not, Pepperbuddy? It’ll be fun.”_

Why not watch it together, indeed. Eli didn’t mind. In fact, he was ecstatic when Steve suggested (leaving no room for discussion or any form of refusal) to binge-watch the entirety of season three at Eli’s place.

To say that he was excited was an understatement. Hanging out with Steve was always fun and if someone told his past self that he was going to end up looking forward to spending hours upon hours with Steve Palchuk watching shows he had suggested the other to watch ( _“I strongly recommend. You absolutely will not regret watching it, Steve!”_ ), he would’ve laughed at them and called them crazy because creeps and aliens were more likely to exist than a world where Steve wasn’t disgusted by his mere presence.

But a lot could happen in several months, it seemed.

He had pumped his fist in the air, not bothering to hide his obvious enthusiasm at the prospect of a sleepover—with the lack of the _sleeping_ aspect of it since they were probably going to be up until the wee hours of the night to see it through the latest and final episode—and immediately agreed. Steve had grinned and patted his back quite strongly, causing Eli to stumble forward slightly, before turning around with a wave.

_“I’ll bring the snacks. See you later, Pep.”_

Steve was practically vibrating on his seated position on Eli’s bed as he recalled the final battle from his perspective with increasing addition of onomatopoeias and wild gesticulation. Eli pressed his lips together, trying to stifle the amused giggle threatening to escape. If he were alone, he would’ve been doing the same thing, gushing and rambling on his own as he would try to silence a loud whoop.

Speaking of loud whoops…

“Steve,” he called softly with a light laugh as he patted the blond’s arm. “I think you should lower your voice a bit. It’s pretty late.”

Steve froze in the middle of air-chopping as he blinked at Eli. His head hastily turned towards the alarm clock on the bedside table, which showed _2:53 AM_ in its neon blue glow. He dropped his arms in a swift motion and curled his fingers into a loose fist in front of his chest.

“My bad!” he whispered loudly.

Eli shook his head with a smile but immediately let out a whine when he spotted the four stray pieces of popcorn on his bed.

“Steve!” he protested, keeping his voice as low as possible while still audible. “You got popcorn all over my sheets.”

“Oh, get over it, Pep,” Steve rolled his eyes as he picked up said pieces of popcorn and casually dropped them into the cardboard bucket on his lap. “It’s just unflavored popcorn. Think of it as- as tiny foam, or something.”

“But still,” he continued, voice growing a little huffy. “You know I hate it when you get food all over my bed.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Steve tried to placate him, although unapologetically. He stood up and placed the popcorn bucket on the floor before swiping at the sheets in a dramatic display of effort to get rid of whatever smaller piece of popcorn that might’ve wandered on the bed. Though they couldn’t exactly _see_ the tiny bits of food if there were really any because the room was very dimly lit.

Eli adjusted his glasses, eyeing Steve’s dark figure through his lashes from his position on the bed. A familiar weight of anxiety started to settle on his chest for possibly ruining the other’s bright mood.

_Great job, Eli._

Slowly, he reached out to wrap his fingers timidly around Steve’s wrist to coax him back to the bed.

“Come on, Steve. It’s all fine. Don’t worry about it,” he muttered sheepishly.

With a humph, Steve all but dropped himself onto the bed. His head laid right next to Eli while his legs dangled off the edge. Steve turned his head towards Eli and he felt the other’s gaze more than he saw it—unusually searching rich brown eyes, darkened to a very dark shade, seemed to read Eli’s every thought under its shamelessly unyielding scrutiny. Eli couldn’t say he was thankful for the lack of proper lighting since the dimness of the room only seemed to add to the tangible shift in the atmosphere.

The display from the laptop that was pushed far to the foot of the bed only served to envelop them faintly in weak light. The alarm clock on the table near them emitted a soft blue light around it, casting a delicate touch of cool hue one side of Steve’s face.

Eli swallowed, and for a second, he thought it was the only audible sound in the room. He didn’t dare meet Steve’s eyes, opting to stare at the indistinct white logo on the old navy blue shirt Steve changed into before he arrived at Eli’s place.

Oh, no. Steve was probably annoyed at Eli now. This was probably going to be their last sleepover. _Stupid, stupid._ His first somewhat real friend who actually willingly wanted to spend time with him and he just had to go all whiny over what? Some harmless bits of food on the bed that they could just- just flick away. Now Steve was most likely fed up with Eli and his insufferable tendencies. He’d tell Eli that they should probably stop hanging out. And Steve would go back to shoving him into lockers. Or- or ignore his existence altogether-

“I may be a bit of a dull person most of the time but,” Steve placed his hand gently around Eli’s ankle, interrupting his turbulent thoughts, “I kind of noticed that you tend to overthink a lot.”

At the soft, deep timbre of Steve’s voice, Eli broke out of his self-deprecating stupor to stare at the blond in confusion. “H-Huh?”

“Er. I’m… sorry that I always end up getting food all over your bed,” Steve continued. “I just get really excited every time and I just… I can’t help it.”

The short, breathy, light-hearted chuckle that came from Steve afterwards was something Eli didn’t hear quite often, but it sent a sort of warmth in his chest that softened the razor-sharp edges of dread that settled there.

“I, um. I just want to say that it’s okay that you get annoyed over things. And it’s okay that you express it. Heck, Eli, I…”

A frown made its way onto Steve’s face and Eli could feel the hands around his ankle slowly tightening into a grip. He didn’t dare move an inch, eyes focused intently on Steve.

“It’s probably stupid, hearing that from me since I… I used to _shove_ you into _lockers_ — I treated you like crap!” Steve clenched his jaw. “And I just…”

“Steve, I know,” the raspy words came out of his mouth before he even had the chance to think them through. “You… You already apologized. We already talked about it, remember? You’re different now. Good-different.”

“No, Eli,” Steve sat up and scooted closer to Eli, hands now clutching gently, but firmly, at his arms. “I mean, yes, I… Ugh, I suck at this.”

Steve took a deep breath before looking Eli straight in the eye. “What I’m trying to say is, and it’s not just about your pet peeve about eating carelessly on the bed, I notice that whenever you disapprove of something and you say it out loud, you always have this- this face on.”

“What face?” Eli’s eyebrows furrowed slightly as imploring eyes widened a little in apprehension and searched for any ire on Steve’s face, though his head was meekly tilted forward. The weight on his chest got heavier and what warmth he felt from earlier got replaced by a familiar and unwelcome twinge.

“That face,” Steve’s lips quirked into a lopsided grin that almost looked fondly exasperated.

But he couldn’t possibly be. That look made Steve’s face appear to have been someone else’s; warmth danced in his eyes and a gentle huff escaped from him.

“What’re you scared of, Pep? Why’d you look like you were the one who got scolded?” Steve dropped his hold on Eli’s arms and he found himself almost missing the touch until one hand slowly reach out to hover hesitantly over his own. Eli swore he felt his pulse still for half a second before gentle fingers wrapped around his wrist in a comforting touch. Doubt curled around the edges of Steve’s crooked smile. Eli felt his thumb trace feather-light patterns on his skin.

“Steve, I…” The words were caught in Eli’s throat. He felt as if he was in a spotlight he shouldn’t be in. Cold wrapped around him like a thin, wet blanket while everything inside him burned with mortification. His mind raced to figure out a way to lighten the situation. “It’s just crumbs, on the bed, it’s… it’s really not a big deal, Steve, it’s fine, really, it is, totally not that deep.”

“It’s not just the crumbs thing, Eli,” Steve shifted and his other hand moved to hold onto Eli’s other wrist. “I’ve noticed it for a while now. And as your partner— your…” Steve paused, determined eyes wavered for a second before they turned steely with resolve. Eli’s mind raced again, this time to interpret that.

“As your _friend,_ I feel like I should tell you that I’m here to listen. And I’m…” Steve’s shoulders slumped. “You always look like you’re about to get hit whenever you say no to something or- or express about _not_ liking something and I’m probably pushing some sort of _boundary_ here. But I’m _worried_ , okay? There. I said it. I’m worried, Eli.”

Eli stared at him with wide, shocked eyes. Steve? _Worried_? About him? Just because he was being dramatic?

He felt his glasses slipping down his nose, but he was afraid that if he tried to push them up, Steve would have to let go of his wrists and see his shaking hands. So, he curled his fingers and swallowed the lump in his throat.

“You were not being dramatic,” Steve shot him with a frown and unfurled his fingers to fix Eli’s glasses with one hand. “Not dramatic, you hear?”

Eli moistened his lips. His jaw felt stiff as if he hadn’t moved it in a while, his mouth felt dry and his tongue, heavy. But he took one look at Steve’s anticipatory, but genuine, eyes and mustered up the courage to speak.

“I…” He croaked out but his throat felt rough and his voice came out raspy. He gulped despite the growing aridity in his mouth and took a deep breath.

“I’m just scared, I guess.” The words came out slow, tentative, _scared_. He looked up again at Steve and found that the other’s features almost matched his own.

“S-Scared?” Steve repeated in a weak, solemn voice.

Eli hoped the reassuring smile he sent Steve’s way looked remotely _reassuring_ , but the stubborn twitch of the edges of his lips made any positive expression a bit of an effort. “Not of you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

A wave of fondness swept over him and the attempted expression of comfort melted into a small, warm smile that came out easier and more genuine. “Not anymore, Steve,” a teasing glint made its way into Eli’s eyes, but his heart never slowed its hammering. “Not since you stopped by that one evening with a goblin.”

Steve scoffed lightly. “I was really close to freaking out, okay?” he defended. “A _goblin_ , Pep!”

Eli slipped his wrist from Steve’s hold in favor of wrapping his fingers slowly around Steve’s much bigger hands. He peered timidly at Steve through his lashes, blood rushing past his ears and pulse threatening to climb up his throat.

Steve blinked, ears red, and started to fake a cough but he made no move to take his hands away. Eli averted his gaze from Steve’s and traced their linked hands with somber eyes despite the burning in his own cheeks. 

“I was scared that one day, you’ll get sick of me complaining and- and- well…” Eli gave Steve a self-deprecating smile who was looking at him, horrified. “It’s pretty stupid, now that I think about it.”

“No, Eli,” Steve immediately spoke up. “Not stupid, _not stupid_.”

Steve pulled one of his hands away and for a heart-stopping second, Eli thought he was going to do the same with his other hand and walk away, tell Eli he was being ridiculous. But instead, the hand reached up, _up_ , the tips of Steve’s fingers tickling Eli’s cheek. Eli regarded him with wide, disbelieving eyes as Steve placed a palm on his cheek, fingers long enough to touch the strands of brown hair behind his ears.

“Steve—”

“I won’t leave,” Steve said softly, too soft, and if it wasn’t for the deafening silence of the room, Eli’s ears wouldn’t have caught it. “I’m here to stay, Eli.”

Eli’s breathing came out ragged, chest heaving and pulse drumming so loud he could hear it. He felt as if he was pushed off a cliff. Wind rushed past his ears and sparks buzzed in his veins, mind hyperaware but muddled at the same time.

There was something in the way Steve said those words that made Eli felt like he was intruding in on something he shouldn’t be bearing witness to in the first place. His voice, void of its usual bravado and self-assurance, came out gravelly and subdued. Eli tried to search Steve’s earnest eyes, mind whirring. Steve just shot him a hesitant smile and carded his fingers delicately through Eli’s hair once before pulling away. 

“It’s getting late, Pep,” Steve piped up with a pat on his arm. The sudden casualness he put on didn’t appear to be genuine, something incomprehensible swimming in his unfocused eyes.

“I’m taking the wall side tonight,” Steve said with what was probably intended to be a domineering smirk but ended up looking half-hearted, as he gestured vaguely at the bed that was pushed against the wall with one hand and the other on his hip.

“Uh, sure,” Eli replied dazedly. His mind wasn’t exactly in the room right now, so he decided to stand up and walk over to the door near his study table. “Bathroom.”

Eli didn’t wait to hear Steve’s response as he slowly closed the door behind him with a soft click. He wouldn’t have heard it anyway what with his mind filled with mist that left him staring at the wall in a haze.

_What the heck just happened back there._

***

Steve watched Eli’s back from the corner of his eye while he pretended to fluff one of the many pillows of varied sizes surrounding Eli’s bed like mountains (courtesy of Mrs. Pepperjack). When the door clicked shut, Steve let out a breath he didn’t notice he was holding.

“Great,” he gruffly muttered to himself, “now you’ve gone and done it, Palchuk.”

He fell to the bed on his back, eyes staring at the glow-in-the-dark stars on Eli’s ceiling.

But it was the truth! He wanted Eli to know that he would never, ever even _think_ to leave. Seeing Eli look so unsure of himself, so scared and anxious, made his stomach feel weird and heavy and unpleasant. And not in a Diablo Maximus way. Steve wanted to pull the other into him and just give him the biggest hug just to get that- that _look_ off his face, because Eli…

Steve sighed and rubbed a hand on his face before resting his arm on his forehead.

Eli looked best when he was smiling. When he talked about his theories for _Future Warrior 4_ , hands moving wildly and eyes gleaming with wonder. When he kept on rambling about their plans for their oath, suggesting the most ridiculous things (Steve wanted to say yes to all of them, but not without pretending to make fun of some of the ideas). When he stood by Steve’s side, donned in their all-black outfit and looking up at Steve in those stupid, big, brown eyes alight with adrenaline and exhilaration and determination.

When he was showing Steve this video on his phone that was apparently very funny, eyes trained on the screen with a gleeful smile on his face as he giggled at random parts. But Steve had not been entirely focused on the video ( _“Interesting, Eli…”_ ) but on the glasses slipping on the bridge of Eli’s nose, the dimple on his cheek that only appeared when Eli smiled this specific smile, the soft fringe that was kept neatly away from his face, and his brown eyes that glowed a honey gold when a flash of bright yellow streaked his face from the video.

‘ _Oh, man_ ,’ Steve had said inwardly to himself when he felt a peculiar wave of _something_ fill his chest and stomach like a swarm. He almost choked from the rate his heart was beating, and his face was _flaming_ for some reason. He swore he might’ve actually breathed out steam at some point. Like a dragon. He remembered feeling the _strongest urge_ to touch; an arm around Eli’s shoulder, a hand on his head, _anything_ , and marveling at their difference in size. He could just envelope Eli completely with his body!

He also remembered snapping out of it and scolding himself for being a creep. He promptly avoided Eli for the rest of the afternoon.

(But then Eli just had to rush towards him while he was on his way to his Vespa and asked him why he suddenly disappeared with that… that _look_ all over his endearingly stupid, nerdy face. Steve _most definitely_ remembered frantically assuring the bespectacled brunet that he forgot about his homework for History class and panicked, and then asked him if he wanted to come over his place and watch Future Warrior 2 together.

One, there was no History homework; two, Steve realized after nights upon nights of thinking it over, that he was a complete pushover when it comes to Pepperjack; and three, he also found out that for some reason or another, he absolutely did not mind, which was very, very strange. It even freaked him out a little.)

Point being, he was—

He was cut off from his thoughts when a familiar, slow, and pleasant ringtone sounded from somewhere in the room. Steve followed the sound and fished out his phone from underneath the pillows.

**_Incoming call  
Domzalski_ **

Toby Domzalski? What the heck did he want at— his eyes darted towards the time on the top of his screen and oh, shoot— 3:34 AM?

He answered the call and pressed his phone to his ear. “What do you want, Domzalski?”

**_"Hey Steve,”_ **Toby let out a sheepish laugh from the other side of the line, **_“Sorry for waking you up but, uh, it’s kind of important.”_**

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever,” Steve drawled, waving his hand dismissively even though he knew the other boy wouldn’t see it anyway.

“What is it? Is it…” Steve whispered exaggeratedly to his phone as he cupped his hand over his mouth in a dramatic attempt to muffle the sound. “Bad-troll related?” 

**_"Uh, not_ exactly _,”_** Toby laughed nervously. **_“But they’re definitely not the type of people you’d meet every day. Or at any point in your life. Ever. Maybe.”_**

Steve wanted to groan and tell Domzalski to just spit it out already. So, he did exactly that.

“Ugh, just tell me, buttsnack,” Steve rolled on the bed and rested on his side.

**_“Gods!”_** Toby suddenly exclaimed before he was loudly shushed by someone from the background. It was followed by a muffled, distressed voice saying something Steve couldn't quite catch.

“What? What is it?” Steve sat bolt upright in alarm as he strained his ear to listen to the background noise through his phone’s speaker. “What’s happening?”

**_“No, Steve. Gods!”_** Toby mimicked Steve’s very loud whispering from before, though the inflection in his voice suggested that he was actually trying not to be heard. “ ** _Like, actual_ gods! _With a small ‘g’!”_**

“What?” Steve hissed, moving his phone to his other ear. “What do you mean _gods_? Like actual _gods_ -gods?”

**_“Yes!”_** Steve heard Toby talking to someone again from the other side but all he could pick up was the word ‘names.’

“And,” Steve gulped, “you’re gonna fight them?”

Gods! Literal gods. Steve couldn’t decide whether he should be excited or scared pantless.

**_Well, uh, we_ kind of _don’t have a choice?”_** Toby laughed nervously. **_“It’s cool if you don’t want to though! I mean we’re not pressuring you or anything, it’s not like the fate of the world is at stake—”_**

Steve cut off Toby’s frantic rambling.

“Of course we’re on board, buttsnack!” Steve protested indignantly. “We’re the _Creepslayerz_! Creeps include evil gods, too!”

**_“Ok, cool. Cool,”_** Toby sighed in relief.

“What, should we come over _now_?” Steve clarified.

**_“Not now!”_** Toby replied and Steve could imagine him waving his hand hastily. **“We’re just letting you guys know in advance. The situation is kinda… time-sensitive. And we need all the help that we can get, so we’ll need everyone ready for the brainstorming sesh tomorrow—or, er, later—at Jim’s, 7 AM.”**

It looked like no one was getting their daily healthy eight hours of sleep tonight—not that Steve was expecting to when the final episode of _Earth Invaders 3_ dropped. They just _had_ to watch it from the start of the season again. It would be criminal not to, and Steve was no criminal.

“Alright, Domzalski,” Steve responded. “Anything else?”

**_“Uh, that’s pretty much it—oh!”_** There was some rustling from the other line before Toby spoke again. **_“Wait, never mind! Yeah, that’ll be it, Steve.”_**

“Alright, then,” Steve said with a shrug. Whatever it was, it couldn’t have been too important.

“See you later, I guess. And don’t get murdered by those gods before the Creepslayerz get the chance to have at ‘em!”

**_“We’ll try! Thanks, Steve!”_ **

Then the line went dead.

Steve remained motionless, staring at the darkening screen of his phone in silence and a slow grin creeping into his face.

“ _Sweet._ ”

“Steve?” a soft voice asked. Eli emerged from the bathroom and walked over to the bed. Steve looked up at Eli and noted the lack of redness in his eyes. He almost sighed in relief and stifled the urge to pull the other closer by the hand.

“Domzalski called,” Steve said, backing up to settle himself on the side of the bed that he claimed for himself.

“Toby?” Eli’s eyebrows went up in surprise. “Really? What about?”

Eli appeared to ponder for a moment before he suddenly gasped in realization. He hurriedly jumped into the bed and moved close— _too close, too close, closer, please—_ to Steve with that bright, determined look in his eyes.

“Did they seek for the assistance of the Creepslayerz?” Eli inquired eagerly.

At the prospect of fighting a whole other level of creeper, Steve’s lips quirked into a wicked grin and grasped Eli’s arms.

“ _Gods_ , Eli,” Steve said excitedly. “Not trolls. Not goblins. Not wizards, or witches. But actual _gods_.”

Eli’s eyes widened and he wrapped his hands around Steve’s wrists, not really noticing their proximity.

“No way,” Eli whispered back incredulously. “ _No way._ ”

Steve smirked. “Better believe it, Pepperbuddy. 7 AM. At Jim Lake’s place.”

Eli fixed him with an enthusiastic look as Steve stared back with his lopsided grin before the brunet finally noticed how close their faces were to each other’s and immediately scampered back. Red tinted his cheeks as his frenetic gaze shifted around the room; anywhere but at Steve.

“We- We better get to sleep, then!” Eli squeaked.

A traitorous chuckle rose from Steve which he instantly covered up with an innocent cough. Eli managed to shoot him a mortified glare that was heavily weakened by his still-reddened cheeks, glasses askew from his hastened movements.

_He’s too adorable, man._

He dived under the covers, leaving Eli to turn the laptop off and put it away. There, obscured by layers of fabric and diligently facing the wall with solid determination, Steve allowed himself a small, fond smile when he heard a small and timid:

“Good night, Steve.”

Steve could feel tingles all over his back like tiny sparks. He was super aware of Eli’s presence behind him, radiating heat that Steve swore was only his mind coaxing him to make questionable actions he would one-hundred-and-one-percent regret in the morning. Never mind his probable own self-inflicted doom, his stupidity would most likely drive Eli away, too.

Steve wouldn’t mind, say, a hug. Not really. Particularly from Eli. _Specifically_ from Eli. Any other person who would dare to hug him would be sent flying to next Sunday. He held back a hopeless sigh. He was no doubt not Eli’s Steve’s-Eli. He was probably an _any other person_ , which sucked because Eli was anything but an _any other person_ to Steve.

He shifted in his position and closed his eyes to try and fall asleep. Within minutes, his mind slowly succumbed to slumber with the sounds of Eli’s breathing lulling him further to unconsciousness.

_Sweet dreams to you, Pepperjack._

**Author's Note:**

> Ah, it seems that I got carried away and now it's multi-chaptered.


End file.
